Good Chemnitzer Video

[Daniel Hersh]

I ran across this today and liked it and thought others might like it too. I think the player is Kevin Altenburg.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubne2nNc8nQ

 

Here's another one from the same performance: also good, but more typical Chemnitzer material than the other one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SywAESbWWSg

Edited November 28, 2014 by Daniel Hersh

[Stefan]

Great!

[JimLucas]

I ran across this today and liked it and thought others might like it too. I think the player is Kevin Altenburg.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ubne2nNc8nQ

 

Three things I notice:

1. He doesn't seem to be using the left hand. Melody only, with the band providing chords/harmony.
2. He plays extended phrases all in one direction. Some on push and some on pull, and occasionally gasps with the air button to keep going in the same direction. More on push than on pull here, but maybe that's just this particular piece?
3. I've long maintained that one characteristic of concertina family instruments is that in principal they are designed to be hand held, even though the Chemnitzer and bandoneon branches have grown so big as to make that difficult. Difficult but not impossible, as he demonstrates. However, I doubt that even he would play it suspended like that for hours at a time.

[Theodore Kloba]

1. He doesn't seem to be using the left hand. Melody only, with the band providing chords/harmony.
2. He plays extended phrases all in one direction. Some on push and some on pull, and occasionally gasps with the air button to keep going in the same direction. More on push than on pull here, but maybe that's just this particular piece?
3. I've long maintained that one characteristic of concertina family instruments is that in principal they are designed to be hand held, even though the Chemnitzer and bandoneon branches have grown so big as to make that difficult. Difficult but not impossible, as he demonstrates. However, I doubt that even he would play it suspended like that for hours at a time.

 

Playing only the melody is not too uncommon in a band setting, but if he were playing it solo with chords the bellows direction would be right for it. Notice that he changes directions with the chord progression: I (A) is on press and IV/V (D/E) are on draw. Since the left keyboard is much more limited than the right, most songs are arranged for bellows direction based on chord changes. In the common major keys, it generally works out that the I chord is in the opposite direction of IV & V.

 

As someone who played bass guitar long before concertina, I also notice that there's a long stretch where the bass player must be finger tapping on his (hidden) left hand since the bass notes are heard but his visible right hand is not moving.

 

I have met "Father Norb" who posted this video and hundreds of others he's shot locally. He's not really clergy, but there's a funny story behind his nickname involving a Sunday morning golf game.

Edited November 29, 2014 by Theodore Kloba